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reNu Medical & Injury Center Blog Regenerative Medicine: The Answer to Alleviating Joint Pain
Joint pain — whether it’s caused by arthritis, degenerative joint disease, tendinitis, or bursitis — often can’t be cured. You do your best to mask the symptoms with pain medication and anti-inflammatories, but the deterioration inside your body’s hinges is still there, and it’s likely getting worse.
At reNu Medical & Injury Center in Newark, Delaware, we approach your aching knees, shoulders, elbows, wrists, and ankles from a completely different angle. Rather than merely managing your symptoms, we tackle the source of your joint pain.
The human body is designed to heal itself. While there are some conditions that exceed your body’s capability to self-repair, many health problems can be greatly improved if you just give your body a helping hand. Enter regenerative medicine.
Understanding regenerative medicine
The term “regenerative medicine” refers to an emerging medical field that focuses on the growth or regeneration of human cells, which in turn may promote the regeneration of damaged tissues and organs.
These procedures stimulate your body’s repair mechanisms so that diseased or damaged tissues can return to full function.
Various clinical therapies fall under the umbrella of regenerative medicine, and ongoing research is currently being conducted around the world to find new and more targeted applications. These therapies may derive cell-regenerating properties from:
- Blood
- Bone marrow
- Fat
- Amniotic tissue
- Umbilical cord blood
After a sample has been properly processed and minimally manipulated, the FDA has approved the transfer, transplantation, infusion, and/or implantation of these healthy human cells for the “repair, reconstruction, replacement, or supplementation of a recipient’s cells or tissues.”
There are several types of regenerative medicine therapies. At reNu Medical & Injury Center, Dr. Matthew DeFroda offers one of the most effective techniques for reducing joint pain and slowing or stopping the progression of tissue degradation — stem cell therapy.
Where do stem cells come from?
Mesenchymal stem cells are the raw building materials that form the basis of all living tissue. Other types of cells have very specific jobs — brain cells, skin cells, muscle cells, and so on. But stem cells have a unique ability to morph into whatever type of cell you need.
Stem cells can be found, as we mentioned, in your own bone marrow or fat tissue, but the most potent source is in the amniotic sac that nourishes a growing baby.
When babies are being formed in their mother’s womb, mesenchymal stem cells differentiate and specialize in order to create bone tissue, muscle tissue, etc. When the baby is born, some of those stem cells are still in the amniotic tissue that is discarded.
Scientists, now understanding the untapped healing power that lives in that tissue, extract life-giving samples of the otherwise expendable material with the full consent of mothers.
How regenerative medicine can help your joints
Our regenerative medicine procedure uses FDA-approved human cellular tissue products (HCTP) to replace and rejuvenate the damaged or diseased cells in your joints.
HCTPs contain growth factors, stem cells, hyaluronic acid, exosomes, and cytokines, which all work in harmony to trigger cell renewal.
We inject the HCTP directly into your joint, where it immediately goes to work. The first thing you notice is a decrease in inflammation. That alone alleviates much of the pain and stiffness in your joints.
Then over the next few weeks and months, as your body responds to the treatment, you begin to experience the healing effects of the HCTP.
Many of our patients get relief with only one injection, but you may need another if the injury or damage is severe. Every person responds to treatment differently, and your healing time table is uniquely your own.
Dr. DeFroda comes alongside you every step of your journey, keeping you informed and listening to you carefully, because he views your health care as a partnership.
Regenerative medicine services will be available at reNu Medical & Injury Center soon. If you are interested in learning more about regenerative medicine, contact us by phone or online to schedule a consultation to talk about your joint pain treatment options.